Tarvaris D. Jackson (born April 21, 1983) is a former American
football quarterback. Born and raised in Montgomery, Alabama, Jackson
played college football at Arkansas and Alabama State, and in the
National Football League (NFL) for the Minnesota Vikings, Seattle
Seahawks, and Buffalo Bills.
The Vikings selected Jackson in the second round of the 2006 NFL
Draft, and Jackson played for the Vikings from 2006 to 2010. A reserve
quarterback for much of his time with the Vikings, Jackson was
starting quarterback for the 2007 season and part of the 2008 season,
after which Jackson started the Vikings' Wild Card playoff game. In
2011, Jackson signed with the Seahawks and was starting quarterback
for the 2011 season. Jackson was then traded to the Bills before the
2012 NFL season but never played a game. Jackson returned to the
Seahawks in 2013. He was the backup quarterback for Russell Wilson
during Super Bowl XLVIII over the Denver Broncos.

Contents

1 Early life and college career

1.1 College statistics

2 Professional career

2.1 2006 NFL Draft
2.2 Minnesota Vikings

2.2.1 2006 season
2.2.2 2007 season
2.2.3 2008 season
2.2.4 2009 season
2.2.5 2010 season

Early life and college career[edit]
Jackson was born and raised in Montgomery, Alabama, and graduated from
Sidney Lanier High School of Montgomery in 2001. Jackson then enrolled
at the University of Arkansas and played three games for the Arkansas
Razorbacks football team as a freshman but suffered a season-ending
injury. Consequently, Jackson received a medical redshirt for the
season.[1] Jackson finished 2001 with 3 of 9 passes completed for 53
yards and 1 interception and rushed 14 yards on 7 carries. In 2002,
Jackson played 8 games. He completed 14 of 39 passes for 143 yards, 1
touchdown, and 2 interceptions and rushed -16 yards in 14 carries.[2]
In 2003, after trailing on the depth chart to future first round draft
pick Matt Jones, Jackson transferred to Alabama State University and
led the Hornets to an 8-5 record, Southwestern Athletic Conference
(SWAC) Eastern Division title, and berth in the SWAC Championship
Game.[1] He completed 160 of 316 passes for 2,342 yards, 18
touchdowns, and 13 interceptions and rushed 444 yards on 91 carries
including 5 touchdowns.[3] As a junior in 2004, Jackson won SWAC
Championship MVP in Alabama State's second 10-win season in school
history.[1] With 11 starts in 12 games, Jackson passed for 2,556
yards, 20 touchdowns, and 9 interceptions. He had 67 carries for 215
yards and 3 touchdowns.[4] In his senior season in 2005, Jackson was
named team captain and was a second-team All-SWAC selection. He threw
for 2,655 yards, 25 touchdowns, and 5 interceptions. He rushed for 271
yards and 2 touchdowns on 95 carries.[4]
College statistics[edit]

All values were taken at the NFL Scouting Combine,[5] except bench
press, arm span, hand span, and Wonderlic that were taken at Alabama
State Pro Day;[3] see also NFL prospect profile at the Wayback Machine
(archived May 19, 2006).

Vikings scouts and personnel had reportedly been watching him closely
in secret over his senior season, particularly liking his performance
in the East-West Shrine Game. They were also impressed by his workout
at the scouting combine (among the top 5 quarterbacks in ball speed
and the 40-yard dash). Several NFL teams, including the Vikings, had
arranged secret workouts with him too. Jackson was selected with the
last pick in the 2nd round (64th overall) of the 2006 NFL Draft, while
he was projected to go much later, in the sixth or seventh round.[5]
The Vikings traded two 3rd round picks to get the 2nd round pick with
which they drafted Jackson, fearing he might get picked sooner than
anticipated. Jackson's early selection caused some surprise, as he was
the 5th quarterback taken and the 1st Division I-AA player selected
(the previous I-AA quarterback drafted was Spergon Wynn in 2000). He
was also the first quarterback from Alabama State to be drafted into
the NFL since Ricky Jones in 1992. Even Jackson was surprised by the
pick, saying, "I was more focused on [getting drafted in] the third
round and even that was stretching it".[6] Most pre-draft publications
did not even have him listed as one of the top 10 eligible
quarterbacks, while he was the 5th selected. On July 26, 2006, Jackson
signed a four-year deal with Minnesota, including a $1 million signing
bonus.[7]
Vikings coach Brad Childress was quoted days before the draft as
saying he was interested in finding a "developmental guy", a "diamond
in the rough" quarterback of the future, raw talent he could teach a
system.[8] Both new coach Childress and Vikings former quarterback
Brad Johnson had had success developing quarterbacks in the past,
including A. J. Feeley and Donovan McNabb.
The day after the draft, Childress was quoted by the St. Paul Pioneer
Press as saying: "I think you judge quarterbacks a little bit
differently...When you see what you want at the quarterback position,
you need to go get it. And that's exactly what I see with Tarvaris
Jackson is a guy that's a piece of clay, that has all the skills in
terms of, No. 1, what's he look like throwing the football?...He's got
a great throwing motion; he's athletic. He has all those things that
we're looking for, and he's wired right. That's important for a
quarterback. I think he's a flatline guy. I think he's a sponge.
You're talking about a guy that never had a coach there as a
quarterback coach. So what can he do with coaching?"[9] Jackson's
agent, Joel Segal, said: "After the draft, there were two clubs that
expressed disappointment and were mad they didn't get him. They were
planning to take (Jackson) very high in the third round, and were
lamenting the fact that the Vikings beat them".

Pre-draft measureables

Wt
40y
20ss
3-cone
Vert
BP
Wonderlic

226 lb*
4.75s*[10]
4.38s*
7.40s*
31​1⁄2"*
22*[11]
19 [12]

(* represents NFL Combine)
Minnesota Vikings[edit]
2006 season[edit]
Jackson's 2006 pre-season passer rating was 106.1, 15th in the league
out of 110 quarterbacks who performed. Only one quarterback from his
draft class (Jay Cutler) did better. He also showed great scrambling
skills averaging 11.3 yards in rushing (the only Viking other than
Brad Johnson to average more than 3.3 yards in rushing). ESPN analyst
Mike Tirico referred to Jackson as a right-handed Michael Vick. His
pre-season performance was enough to surpass 2nd and 3rd string QBs
Mike McMahon and J. T. O'Sullivan on the depth chart. After the
pre-season, McMahon and O'Sullivan were cut from the team and Brooks
Bollinger was brought in, whom Jackson then competed against for the
number two spot.
On September 25, 2006, Jackson had minor knee surgery to repair the
meniscus in his knee. He returned to limited practice after two weeks,
and then came back to play his first NFL game with the Vikings in week
13 against the Chicago Bears[13] in the fourth quarter after Johnson
was benched for throwing four interceptions and backup QB Brooks
Bollinger was injured. Jackson completed three of his four passes
before fumbling the ball to Chicago and the Bears then ran the clock
out. Following this game when Jackson was asked if he was ready to
take over as starter he said "Not really...We still have a chance to
make the playoffs, so we're still trying to do that. So it's obvious
that Brad is still our quarterback so we can stay on that."[14]
Two weeks later in week 15, Johnson started the game but was benched
in the fourth quarter when the Vikings had been underperforming the
entire game losing by a score of 26-7 at the time Jackson went in late
in the third quarter against the New York Jets. Although Johnson had
not thrown an interception that game and had a respectable passer
rating of 94.2 in the game, the Minnesota fans jeered Johnson
throughout the game and chanted "We want Jackson!" at numerous points
because Johnson had only thrown 9 touchdowns all season (in 14 games)
and had a career worst 71.9 passer rating throughout the season.
Jackson received a standing ovation as he trotted out onto the field.
A landmark in Jackson's career happened that game when Jackson
completed his first touchdown pass to Mewelde Moore. Jackson threw 177
yards, a TD, and ran three times for 20 yards while the Jets protected
their large lead. He also threw an interception in the red zone.
Jackson was named the starting quarterback for Minnesota towards the
end of his rookie season. Jackson's first game was a week 16 night
game against the Green Bay Packers at Lambeau Field. Game conditions
were very poor. A steady rain fell throughout the evening and the
kickoff temperature was only 36 degrees Fahrenheit. The Vikings lost
by a score of 9-7 with the only Vikings score coming from an
interception for a touchdown by defensive back Fred Smoot. The offense
set a franchise low record of only three first downs the whole game,
did not get close enough to the end zone to even attempt a field goal,
and only had 27 passing yards gained against the NFL's 19th ranked
defense (ranked 26th against the pass). Jackson had a passer rating of
36.5, had a 50% completion rate (10-20 for 50 yards), 1 interception,
and a fumble. Packers quarterback Brett Favre only managed a slightly
better 52% completion rate (26-50) and threw 2 interceptions. He did
throw for 285 yards, though, but could not find the end zone either.
Despite the performance's lack of "merit" (according to Childress),
number 7 out of Alabama State remained the starter for the rest of the
regular season.
2007 season[edit]
Jackson did not live up to the Vikings' expectations in 2007 despite
finishing 8-4 as a starter. Jackson had 9 touchdowns and 12
interceptions, along with a 159 yards per game, causing the Vikings to
have the second-worst passing offense in the NFL. His 70.8 passer
rating was 28th among NFL quarterbacks. Jackson missed three games
because of injuries, which included a strained groin, a concussion and
a fractured index finger. The Vikings failed to make the playoffs.
Analysts put the Vikings' 8-8 record on the successful running of
Chester Taylor and rookie Adrian Peterson, which took the pressure off
of Jackson and the defense.
Later in the season, opponents decided to focus all their defensive
efforts on stopping Peterson and the Vikings running game, while
daring Jackson to beat them in the passing game. The Washington
Redskins successfully utilized five defensive lineman or four
linebackers against the Vikings, leaving only two or three defensive
backs in pass coverage.[15][16] And the 49ers blitzed their
cornerbacks 20 percent of the time instead of covering receivers with
them.[17][18] On the season's last game against the Broncos, Jackson
led the Vikings to two fourth quarter drives to tie the game and send
it into overtime. In overtime, however, Jackson fumbled on the second
play and the Vikings lost the game. Jackson showed slow improvement
over the season: he played a large role when the Vikings went on a
five-game winning streak in November, but also showed his inexperience
in several ill-judged interceptions, jump passes, and turnovers. After
the season, Childress would not say if Tarvaris Jackson would be the
starter in 2008, explaining that he wanted to "evaluate the total body
of work" first.[19]
2008 season[edit]
There was a lot of media coverage on Jackson the summer of 2008. The
Vikings returned seven players that were in the 2008 Pro Bowl (only
three teams had more), and spent $60 million in guaranteed contract
money upgrading their team with Jared Allen, traded from the Kansas
City Chiefs, and free agents Bernard Berrian and Madieu Williams.
Several analysts believed better quarterback play was all that was
needed to make the Vikings one of the top contending teams in the NFL,
and with the Green Bay Packers losing Brett Favre the NFC North
Division was up for grabs. Sport's Illustrated's Paul Zimmerman
predicted the Vikings would win the Super Bowl.[20]
Head coach Brian Childress decided to stay with Jackson as the
starting QB and brought in Gus Frerotte to be his backup. It was
widely reported in the off-season that Jackson had a new swagger,
handled situations in practice well where he looked lost in the
previous years, and had an improved grasp of the Vikings offensive
system.[21] Childress threw a "Coaching 101" clinic for media
reporters in which he played a tape of Jackson showing the progress he
made in 2007 through a series of missed passes or poor decisions that
he made in early games but executed properly in later contests and
concluded with some tape of him hitting a target net with every
15-yard pass he threw during an offseason drill.[22] Offensive
coordinator Darrell Bevell repeatedly told the press that although it
was Jackson's third year with the Vikings it was really his second
year playing, and NFL quarterbacks improve the most between their
first and second years.[23] Jackson had another good preseason, until
he injured his knee again in the second preseason game which kept him
from playing the last two preseason games.
In the first game of the regular season Jackson threw a game-ending
interception and in the second game the Vikings made five field goal
attempts and no touchdowns. The Vikings lost both games by close
margins, and Jackson's 64.8 passer rating ranked him 26th in the NFL.
Childress said in the second post-game press conference that Jackson
would still definitely be the starter next week, but on Monday after a
coaches' meeting he changed his mind and benched Jackson for the
remainder of the year.[24]

Jackson (7) with the Vikings.

After being relegated to backup after an 18-15 defeat to the
Indianapolis Colts in Week 2, Jackson saw his next significant action
in Week 14 against Detroit, where he played the entire second half in
place of an injured Gus Frerotte. With the Vikings trailing 6-3 at
halftime to the winless Lions, Jackson completed eight of ten passes
for 105 yards and a touchdown, an 11-yard strike to TE Visanthe
Shiancoe that would be the game-winning score for the Vikings.[25] The
following week, with Frerotte still injured, Jackson was the starting
quarterback against the Arizona Cardinals and he played arguably the
best game of his career. Jackson completed 11 of 17 passes for 163
yards and, most impressively, threw four touchdown passes and no
interceptions. Jackson earned NFC Offensive Player of the Week honors
for his performance as well as the FedEx Air Player of the Week award.
The Vikings lost 24-17 to the Atlanta Falcons in Week 16 despite
Jackson's performance. He completed 22 of 36 passes for 233 yards with
two touchdowns and no interceptions. He also rushed for 76 yards
(which matched the total of Pro-Bowl running back Adrian Peterson).
With the Vikings in a win-and-in situation against the New York Giants
in Week 17, Jackson overcame an interception in the end zone by
leading the Vikings on a touchdown drive (a 54-yard strike to Bernard
Berrian) and the game-winning field goal drive on the following
possessions. The Vikings defeated the New York Giants 20-19 and earned
the NFC North title. [26]
The Vikings season ended in the Wild Card Playoff round with a loss to
the Philadelphia Eagles. Jackson went 15-for-35 for 164 yards in the
game with one interception.
2009 season[edit]
Jackson went into the 2009 season in competition for a starting job
with Sage Rosenfels, who the Vikings had acquired from the Houston
Texans. The Vikings also pursued former New York Jets and Green Bay
Packers quarterback Brett Favre, who had retired after the end of the
2008 season. Favre announced that he would not join the Vikings prior
to training camp, however, and Jackson and Rosenfels split duties in
the early part of camp.[27] Jackson was the second quarterback to play
in the opening preseason game, and was expected to start the second
preseason game against the Kansas City Chiefs.[28]
That changed, however, when Favre announced that he would play for the
Vikings after all, signing with the team on August 19.[29] Jackson,
Rosenfels, and 2008 third-stringer John David Booty were believed to
be competing for two roster spots, and for the primary backup job.
Many observers believed the Vikings would attempt to trade
Jackson.[30]
Jackson helped his case with a strong performance in Favre's debut
game, throwing for 202 yards and two touchdowns in backup work.[31]
Ultimately, the Vikings elected to keep Jackson and Rosenfels on the
active roster, with Jackson as the primary backup to Favre.[32]
Jackson entered the Vikings' first two games of the season in garbage
time.[33][34] He also was used as a decoy in punt coverage during week
two.
2010 season[edit]
The Vikings re-signed Jackson on Monday, April 19 as they waited for
Favre to decide whether he would return for another season, which he
did. Jackson was a restricted free agent who was given a one-year
tender worth $1.176 million. Jackson backed up Favre for the 2010
season.
Jackson took over for an injured Favre in Week 8 against the New
England Patriots. Jackson threw for one touchdown in the loss. Jackson
took over for an injured Favre yet again in Week 13 against the
Buffalo Bills. Jackson threw two touchdown passes to Sidney Rice in
the 38-14 win, but also threw three interceptions.
Jackson started On December 13, against the New York Giants in place
of the injured Favre. In that game Jackson suffered a turf toe injury
and missed the rest of the season.
On March 3, 2011, the Vikings declined to tender Jackson a contract
offer to play for them in the 2011 season. Under league rules, Jackson
became an unrestricted free agent.
Seattle Seahawks[edit]
Jackson officially signed a two-year contract with Seattle Seahawks on
July 29, 2011[35] and was announced as the starting quarterback
shortly after.[36] In Seattle, he had been reunited with offensive
coordinator Darrell Bevell and wide receiver Sidney Rice both members
of the Vikings during his time there. Along with wide receiver Mike
Williams, Jackson was appointed to offensive team captain, which was
previously owned by Matt Hasselbeck, who signed with the Tennessee
Titans. Despite having a below-average year compared to other
quarterbacks in the league, Jackson had the best year of his career,
finishing with 3,091 yards passing, throwing 14 touchdowns and 13
interceptions. During the off-season, the Seahawks acquired former
Green Bay Packers quarterback Matt Flynn and drafted Wisconsin
quarterback Russell Wilson to compete with Jackson for the 2012
starting quarterback position.
Buffalo Bills[edit]

Jackson in 2013.

On August 26, 2012, Jackson was traded to the Buffalo Bills for a
conditional seventh round draft pick.[37] The third-string quarterback
for the season, Jackson did not see any game action in 2012.[1][38]
On February 15, 2013, the Bills re-signed Jackson to a one-year, $2.25
million deal.[39][40] He was released on June 10, 2013.[41] ESPN
reported on June 12 that Jackson was likely to re-sign with the
Seattle Seahawks for the 2013 season.[38]
Seattle Seahawks (second stint)[edit]
On June 13, 2013, Jackson signed a one-year deal with the Seattle
Seahawks.[42] Jackson competed with Brady Quinn for the backup
quarterback spot behind starter Russell Wilson. To coincide with the
signing of Jackson, the Seattle Seahawks released quarterback Jerrod
Johnson. The Seahawks released quarterback Brady Quinn and made
Jackson the official backup quarterback to Wilson. Jackson appeared in
3 games of the 2013 regular season producing 151 passing yards and a
touchdown. During Super Bowl XLVIII against the Denver Broncos,
Jackson came in relief of Russell Wilson during the 4th quarter,
marking the first time in 13 years any backup quarterback has played
in a Super Bowl. The Seahawks won their first Super Bowl in franchise
history as they defeated the Broncos 43–8. Following the season,
Jackson signed a 1-year deal to stay with the Seahawks. The Seahawks
made it to Super Bowl XLIX, but failed to repeat as Super Bowl
champions as they fell to the New England Patriots by a score of
28–24.
Following the 2015 season, Jackson became an unrestricted free agent
and has not signed with any NFL team.
Personal life[edit]
Arrest in domestic violence incident[edit]
On June 24, 2016, Jackson was arrested in Kissimmee, Florida and
charged with aggravated assault with a deadly weapon for allegedly
pulling a gun on his wife. In July 2016, Jackson said he did not have
money to pay for an attorney and requested a public defender. [43] On
August 3, 2016, the Florida Assistant State Attorney chose not to
prosecute the case.[44]
Career statistics[edit]